


Waiting on Len

by LuketheL



Category: Vocaloid
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Character Deaths, Dark, Gen, Knives, Strong Language, gun use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 17:41:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28817229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuketheL/pseuds/LuketheL
Summary: The annual Vocaloid card game is put on hold when Len disappears in the bathroom. Tension grows between the remaining players, and trust begins to waiver.
Comments: 10
Kudos: 8





	Waiting on Len

“Will Len ever stop shitting?”

Yohio frustratedly threw his cards on the table, making sure they were face down, and angrily turned to the bathroom which remained occupied for at least the past thirty minutes.

“I know. Shame we can’t continue this game without him.” Bruno leaned back in his seat, letting his fedora cover his eyes as he kicked his feet up on the table they played on. It seemed all of the players were growing impatient with Len. 

At the end of the table, the fourth blonde player sipped the last drink from her cup, before placing it down. A pink-haired maid arrived at her side with a tray, which held a small honey pot.

“More honey, Lily?” Cocorobo the maid asked when she noticed the empty cup.

“Yes, please.”

Cocorobo slowly tipped the honey jar over the glass, letting the honey gradually come out in all its thickness. The others at the table watched as the liquid slowly drizzled into the cup. Lily’s favorite. 

“At this rate, your cup will finish filling before Len gets out of the bathroom.” Yohio sat back.

From beside Lily, another blonde girl named kanon watched the honey, then looked up to the one pouring it.

“I sure wish I had a maid of my own to do everything for me. Where did you two meet, anyway?”

“Oh, on a little camping trip. And she’s not my maid, she helps me out on her own accord.” 

“I thought the rules were very clear,” the non-blonde man said from the side of the round table. He spoke in a low, gruff voice that drew anyone around him to listen. “One person from each household. I still don’t understand why she is here.”

“Cocorobo goes where I go, Longya,” Lily said to the black and white-haired muscular man. “She isn’t playing, so what harm is there in her being here?”

“She’s got a point. The maid stays.” the short-haired girl beside Longya put an end to the statement. Not entirely satisfied, Longya sat back and folded his arms.

“Thank you, flower,” Lily addressed the one who came to her aid, before seeing that her glass had been refilled. “And thank you, too, Coco.” 

“Don’t mention, Lily. Hehe.” Cocorobo gave a cheeky smile and strutted off. She made sure to keep herself occupied while Lily played with the others. 

“Hey, what’s up with you, miki? You’ve been awfully quiet this whole time.” Yohio put the spotlight on the bright-haired girl next to him.

“Huh? Oh, nothing. Just thinking about my strategy, that’s all. Talking too much gives too much away. You know how it is. It’s how Iroha lost last year.”

Everyone in Vocaloid knew about the annual Uno event. Every year, one randomly selected representative from one of the nine biggest households would come to The Den to play a game of Uno. The game symbolized unity between the Vocaloid households, giving the nine houses in the agreement a sense of compassion for one another. On top of it, the winning house had the honor of performing in one of the largest concerts in the country, which was also held every year. Up until that year, the Crypton household held the title of champion for five years in a row. 

The match was unregulated, and relied on the unity and trust of the players involved. Every game, no matter the victor, the players were under contractual agreement to concede. The Den, itself, was a private property owned collectively by the households. Whenever they held the Uno event, they would make arrangements with one another to use the building and provide necessary items such as food and drinks. 

Yohio, miki, kanon, Lily, Bruno, Longya, and flower sat in a circle at the table. There were also two empty chairs, one between Lily and Bruno and another between flower and Longya. The one next to flower belonged to Len, and the empty one beside Bruno belonged to a green-haired girl dressed in orange, who sat on the other side of the room on a small sofa. 

Sonika, the final member of the Uno event, grew tired of waiting for Len and decided to sit in a more comfortable area. She had brought her bag along, and inside, she kept a book she had been reading for over a week. The title read “20 Days,” and she had taken it out to pass the time while Len used the bathroom. 

“Hey, bookworm, care to join us?” Yohio called over to Sonika. 

“I will. Don’t you worry.” she called back, without looking up from the book. She invested all of her interest into the pages she read, and would likely have trouble putting them down to resume the game. 

“What’s that book even about, anyway?” Yohio went to take a drink from his cup, but found it to be empty. “Gosh, would it kill them to give us some service around here?” 

Yohio stood up and brought his glass over to the bar in the back of the room. Since nobody worked at such a late hour, and Cocorobo had no interest in stopping him, he opened up the minifridge and retrieved a litre of soda. 

“Well, it’s a post-apocalyptic dystopian story. It’s about these prisoners that are trapped in a simulation. They have to survive, but they can’t get along with each other enough to work up a strategy, and one of them--”

“On second thought, I don’t really want to hear it,” Yohio said as he poured himself a glass of orange soda. “All I want is for Len to get his ass back here so we can continue this godforsaken game!”

Yohio returned to the table with his beverage and sat down. As he took a sip of it, he caught sight of his wristwatch and put it down. “It’s past midnight,” he said. “We really need to get this game going.”

Without a word, Longya pulled out his chair and stood up. Everyone looked over to him as he stepped away from the table.

“I’ll go check on him.”

A few people watched Longya walk over to the restroom, where he stepped inside to check on Len. Once he disappeared behind the door, everyone returned their focus to the table. Each of them still had a good few cards left, so they still had a lot of game to get through. 

“Hey, didn’t I see you at Jud’s the other day?” flower looked over to kanon. 

“Me? You must be mistaking me for my twin sister, anon. I don’t know anyone named Jud.” kanon answered.

“No, the store, Jud’s. I think I saw you there.”

“Shouldn’t my response be proof that I wasn’t there? I wouldn’t have mistaken Jud for a person if I knew it was a store.” kanon did not look at flower while she spoke.

“I’m sure it was you, though. She had a ponytail. A ponytail just like yours. And that face, it was--”

“Can you stop? I told you it wasn’t me.” kanon said in an assertive manner. flower seemed taken aback, and slouched down in her chair. 

“Sorry, I’ll drop it. Sorry. I was just making conversation.”

While the table sat in silence, Longya returned from the bathroom. He quietly pulled out his chair and sat down, receiving gazes from everyone around him.

“Well? Any news?” Yohio pushed for an answer.

Longya shook his head. “He’s in there, but he doesn’t feel well enough to come out. I didn’t force him.”

“Oh. I hope he feels better soon.” kanon twiddled her fingers underneath the table.

“Let’s wait a little longer, then,” said Lily. “I’m sure he’ll be out in no time.”

And that is what they did. The sound of the clock ticked as the group of eight sat in complete quietude. Few of them spoke with each other, apart from Cocorobo coming over to whisper in Lily’s ear. Nobody questioned what they were talking about, but Longya seemed to be annoyed by it. 

When Sonika gasped aloud, everyone at the table shifted their gaze to see what had shocked her. She lowered the book from her face for the first time in nearly an hour, and spoke before anyone even asked her to.

“Drake was a traitor.”

“Good for Drake.” Bruno chuckled and sat back in his chair once again. Nobody else expressed any interest, and they immediately turned away. 

“I like your story, Sonika,” Lily perked up after a bit of silence. “How did Drake betray them?” 

“Thank you, Lily. It’s nice to know someone’s interested. Well, Drake has been a little shifty since the beginning. He was actually put into the simulation for being a serial killer. Out of nowhere, he just murdered the protagonist’s best friend. Now he’s one of the biggest villains in the story.”

“If he was a serial killer, wouldn’t they have seen it coming?” asked Lily, sounding genuinely absorbed in where this was going.

“Well, that’s the thing. The book’s antagonist mentions a few times that you can easily deceive others with the way you act and present yourself. Sometimes, it’s really hard to tell who a killer or accomplice is, even if it’s painfully obvious.”

“Fascinating.” Lily took another sip from her glass. She had quite a bit of honey left in there, since it took quite a while to drink something so thick. Nonetheless, Cocorobo was there with a honey pot on hand for the event of an emergency refill. 

“Sonika, are you just gonna sit over on the couch? I’d like to sit down for a bit. I’ve been on my feet all day.” Cocorobo placed a hand on the vacant seat next to Lily.

“Go for it. I don’t think Len’ll be out for another good while.” 

“Yay, thank you!”

Longya watched Cocorobo like a hawk as she pulled out the seat and sat beside her blonde buddy. The two smiled at each other and engaged in quiet conversation while Longya rubbed his chin. 

“Lighten up, man,” Bruno leaned forward in his chair to acknowledge Longya. He tipped his fedora upwards so his bright eyes showed. “You don’t have to be so glum around here.”

Longya snarled, hardly caring to engage Bruno at all. 

“Yeah,” Coco chimed in. “If anyone’s gotta be glum, it’s me! Lily and I arranged for me to clean the bathrooms when we’re done here. I gotta clean up whatever catastrophe Len is creating in there!” 

“Whew,” Yohio leaned back in his chair and whistled. “Sucks to be you. Sucks to be all of us right now.”

Yohio turned to miki, who still sat quietly beside him. “Why are you so damn quiet?” he asked for the second time. 

“I’m under no obligation to speak. You can’t force me to.” was all miki said in response. 

“Sweet Jesus, Mary, and Joseph…” Yohio shook his head. 

Little conversation ensued after that. Longya eyed everyone with a stare so sharp it could cut through metal, but most people did not want to question what was on his mind. Being raised in such an esteemed family likely detached him from the rest of the world. Apart from being a member of the VSinger household, Longya was also to inherit his family company, which guaranteed success in his future. Some considered the possibility that he viewed his fellow playmates as inferior. Smaller folk than him who deserved less acknowledgement. 

After a while, all glasses on the table were empty. Lily allowed Cocorobo to pour her another cup of honey, but no one else bothered going to the fridge to retrieve more soda or tea. The atmosphere had grown so awkward, nobody felt comfortable moving anywhere, since it would have drawn all the attention to them. 

“You know, I was at Jud’s the other day. Like I said before,” flower started the first conversation in what seemed like hours. “They had this big display of pocketknives. It’s new, and not really anything they would display on a normal day. I just had to check it out for myself.”

“I like knives.” Lily smiled, and Cocorobo nodded along with her. 

“Really? So do I. It’s hard to find one that’s efficient, though. You know, it’s hard to carry a knife around with all the laws in place. You gotta have one that’s small enough to fall within legal boundaries.”

“Any knife is good enough if you hit the right spot. Did you buy any?” Lily entertained flower’s interest. 

“Me? No, not me. No. I like them, but I have to save my money. I’m a bit of a reckless spender, if you know what I mean. Trying to curb it, at least a little.”

“What about kanon there?” Bruno snickered. “Didn’t you say she was in the store the other day, too?”

“I told you, I wasn’t. Don’t even bring it up again.” kanon clenched her teeth and tensed her muscles. Bruno did not seem to care about the state it put her in, since he laughed it off and continued talking.

“I’ve bought a good few knives, myself, but not from any small-time store like Jud’s.”

“Where do you get your knives, Bruno?” asked flower, seeming genuinely curious.

“Usually the dining section of a department store.” 

Bruno thought he was more clever than the others gave him credit for. flower only replied with a restrained chuckle, while Lily rolled her eyes in an unamused fashion.

The next time anyone checked the time, the clock read “1:14 AM.” They were not getting anywhere at this rate. 

“I’m gonna need coffee to get through this night.” Bruno pulled out his chair and left the table. A small coffee pot sat at the far end of the bar, which Bruno made his way over to. Opening one of the cabinets behind him, he pulled out a can of coffee grounds and prepared to make himself a pot. 

“Looks like we set a new record for the longest game.” Lily chuckled.

“Yeah, but not much of it is the game, now, is it?” Yohio whined. 

Finally, Longya put his hands on the table and stood up. Everyone watched him with widened expressions, wondering what he could possibly be thinking. After looking around at everyone, he spoke.

“This has gone on for far too long. All in favor of voting Len out of the game, say I.”

At first, nobody said anything. It seemed unfair to vote someone out of a game that wasn’t intended to be elimination-based. Even so, nobody really wanted to continue waiting for the young Kagamine. He clearly wasn’t coming out, and even if he did, he clearly wouldn’t be in a state to continue playing. Removing him entirely was probably the best option. 

“I.” Yohio was the first to raise his hand.

“I-I.” flower came next.

One by one, Lily, miki, Bruno, Sonika from the distance, kanon, and even Cocorobo voted to remove Len from the game. The vote fell 8-0.

“I also vote to remove Len. We’re unanimous, then…” Longya noted. “Looks like the Crypton house is going to lose their five-year streak.”

With everyone in agreement, the decision to remove Len from the game followed through. The eight remaining players gathered around the table to resume their game. Bruno and Sonika returned to their seats, carrying the mug of coffee and the book, 20 Days, respectively. 

Cocorobo pulled Len’s chair away from the table and brought it over to the corner where she sat. She frequently got up to poke around the table, but this annoyed some of the players. Particularly Longya and Yohio. 

The clock ticked and the cards went down. The game returned to full swing. Bruno had the most cards, while kanon had the least, marking her the closest to victory. When she fell down to one card, she forgot to say “Uno,” which forced her to draw more. It became anyone’s game.

“Lily, cut it out.” Yohio snapped at the blonde girl across from him.

“What do you mean?” Lily asked, ready to defend herself from any verbal attack.

“I know you’re using that maid of yours to cheat. She’s telling you what each of our cards are!”

“I will not stand for this slander!” Lily slammed her own cards facedown on the table. “Cocorobo hasn’t told me a single thing all night! If I was cheating, I assure you I would have won by now.” 

“Y’know, he’s got a point,” Bruno decided to stir the pot. “Why else would you have brought her if you weren’t planning to use her to cheat?” 

“I told you, she goes where I go! Nobody works here, so they said I could bring her if she helped set up and take down! You can thank her for that coffee you’re drinking. She’s the one who brought it!” 

Cocorobo timidly slipped to the back of the room, not liking the drama that ensued in her name. She felt guilty about the whole argument, as she never wanted to upset anyone. She almost wanted to join in to defend herself, but couldn’t think of a way to do it without making the situation worse.

“Why are you getting so defensive about it? Huh? If you’re not cheating, why are you shouting?” Bruno questioned Lily, who fumed in front of him. 

“Because you’re insulting me and my friend! I don’t need to cheat to be good at a game, goddammit! Are you just upset because you’re losing?!” 

“Hey, Hio’s the one who brought it up.” 

“You’re bringing it back to me, huh? Who’s side are you on, anyway?” Yohio fired back.

“Can you all just shut up?!” kanon slammed her hands on the table in frustration. Everyone stopped what they were doing immediately. kanon lifted herself from where she sat, aggravated and fed up with everyone. It must have taken someone from outside the argument to end the argument, itself, since Lily, Bruno, and Yohio all calmed down after a few seconds.

kanon stepped away from the table, rubbing her eyes and sighing. “I need to use the restroom. I gotta wash up and collect myself. It is too late in the day.”

“Early, you mean.” Bruno smirked.

“Fuck you.” 

On her way to the bathroom, kanon stopped by the couch Sonika formerly sat on. She retrieved her handbag, then proceeded to the men’s room.

“That’s the men’s room, you know.” Bruno pointed out.

“Does it look like I care?” 

After saying those words, kanon disappeared into the bathroom. The same one Len refused to come out of. 

With another player in the bathroom, the game had to be put on pause once again. This worked out all too well, as most of the gamers needed to take a breather after such an instant of drama. Neither Bruno, Yohio, or even Lily apologized to one another, neither did they acknowledge each other. They likely wouldn’t speak again for at least a few days even after the game ended. 

In the back of the room, Cocorobo sat in her chair, moping. Seeing her friend so distraught, Lily departed from the table to comfort her. When Lily came to her side, Cocorobo put her arms around her in a hug. 

“I’m sorry about all that. It isn’t your fault.” 

“Are you sure?” Cocorobo didn’t seem convinced. “I’m sorry I caused so much trouble. I wouldn’t have come if I--”

“Nonsense. I’m happy you’re here with me.” Lily didn’t let her pal finish. “These guys are restless and angry. They would have just found something else to argue about if you weren’t here. Trust me, your presence is keeping me sane.” 

Back at the table, flower wanted to start a conversation, but did not want to provoke Bruno or Yohio further. Longya had not said anything about the situation, but he had made his thoughts on Cocorobo clear from the beginning. miki remained quiet, just like she had since the start of the night. 

Managing to slightly cheer her compatriot up, Lily returned to the table. Shortly afterwards, so did kanon. This time, however, she kept her bag with her.

“Any update on Len?” asked Sonika. 

“I told him we’re going on without him. He said it’s fine, he doesn’t think he’ll be out of there for another hour or so.” 

“Ouch, that’s rough,” said Lily. “You hear that, Coco? We might be here for a little longer than expected.”

“That’s fine.” the maid said back.

With all active players having returned to their seats, the game continued. At first, all seemed to be going well. They put their personal gripes aside to continue playing, not bothering with insults or snide comments about one another. They only cared about finishing the game and getting out of there.

Then, kanon screamed. 

kanon threw her cards on the floor and cried out, slipping out of her chair and landing on her rear end. Everyone at the table jumped up and hurried to her side, not having the slightest idea as to why she started freaking out.

“kanon? kanon, what’s wrong?!” Lily took the screamer by the shoulders and tried to shake her back to reality. The ponytailed girl only continued screaming at the top of her lungs, before shoving Lily off of her. 

Lily staggered backwards, and everyone else backed away when kanon lifted her handbag. Her screaming simmered down and her face fell into a sullen look. As everyone feared what she may do next, the other six in the room backed away slowly. However, kanon proceeded toward Lily, clutching her bag the whole time, ready to open it. The two blondes made eye contact, seeing the clear emotions in both of their faces. They knew exactly what the other intended to do. 

Before kanon could do anything, however, a chair slammed against her back, breaking off a leg in the process. A second hit from the chair rendered her unconscious, and she collapsed to the floor, falling face down on top of her bag. 

Standing behind the unconscious girl, with a broken chair in hand, was a heavily-breathing Cocorobo. Lily glanced up at her companion, who wearily stared back at her.

“Sh-she was going to hurt you. I just knew it. I couldn’t let her do that…” Cocorobo drew a few more heavy breaths. Nobody could believe what they had just witnessed, and neither did any of them understand it. Something had prompted kanon to behave like that. 

“What was that all about?” asked Yohio in disbelief. “Why did she do that?!”

Bruno and Longya made their way over to kanon, and they both kneeled down to check on her from behind. Thankfully, the chair was not enough to sap the life out of her, but it did leave quite a mark.

“To be honest,” Bruno stood up. “She’s been acting strange all night. I knew something must’ve been up with her.” 

“Should we call an ambulance?” flower jumped in. She didn’t get too close to kanon’s body, but she tried to see everything from a safe distance. 

After taking another look at the stricken girl’s body, Longya brought himself to his feet and addressed the others. “No,” he answered flower. “But I do think someone has to take responsibility for their actions. Cocorobo, you drove here, right?”

“N-no…” Cocorobo lowered the chair. “L-Lily and I walked here…” Lily stepped in front of Cocorobo as if ready to defend her. Longya simply shifted himself to look at the maid from over Lily’s shoulder.

“Well, someone better bring her to the hospital. She’ll need to get both those wounds and her head checked out.”

“I’ll drive her, I have a car.” Bruno came forward. Longya sneered at this offer. Bruno lifted kanon to her feet, supporting her by slinging her arm over his shoulder and holding her bag with his other hand.

“I think the one who did this to her will have some explaining to do. Perhaps--”

“Coco stays here,” Lily stopped Longya in the middle of his sentence. “She and I aren’t going anywhere.” 

“Why are you so insistent on staying here?” Yohio came in to support Longya. 

“We have to clean up once we’re finished here, that’s why,” Lily defended herself. “We’ll visit kanon in the hospital later. Right now, she just needs treatment!”

“Lily’s right,” Bruno said, making for the door with kanon over his shoulder. “I’ll take her for now. We can talk about the details later.” 

Longya did not seem pleased with Bruno being the only one going. Regardless, he was not about to go with him, himself. He had not liked Cocorobo since the beginning, and if he made the rules, he would have forced her to go with. However, as long as Lily stood in his way, that would not happen.

“Go on without us. I don’t care about the stupid game anyway.” Bruno opened the door and called back to the others. The six nodded or gave grunts of agreement, and without another word, Bruno left the Den with kanon. 

“What then?” they wondered. Did they continue the game even after such a display? Would it be appropriate? Probably not, but they were making progress, nevertheless. Unfortunately, it seemed kanon had been the closest to winning, so the game would drag on for much longer than it otherwise would have. 

Unable to say anything further, the players reunited at the table and decided to continue. “At this rate, the winner will be whoever’s left in the end.” Sonika chuckled. She felt it necessary to find some humor in the situation, especially given the dull and spiteful appearances everyone else had taken on. Who would have thought a simple game of Uno could lead to such havoc?

Many were nervous, and people like flower and Yohio were quivering as they placed their cards. flower took the lead, falling down to two cards before Sonika finally suggested:

“Why don’t we reschedule for another night? It really doesn’t feel right to keep playing under these conditions.”

“We’re here now, aren’t we?” Longya replied, sternly.

“I-I guess so.”

“We’ll be finished in no time! I only got two cards left, so--”

Before flower finished speaking, Longya placed a “Draw 4” card in the pile, just before her turn. 

“You were saying?” Longya said in a condescending manner.

The game dragged on. The clock ticked nearer to 2, and nobody felt any more accomplished than they did two hours prior. The more and more cards went down, the higher the overall anxiety in the room lifted. Yohio seemed especially put off, growing angrier by the second. When he placed a card that forced miki to draw six more cards to find a matching color, he scowled when she hardly even reacted.

“Why have you been SO FUCKING QUIET this whole time?!” Yohio slammed his fist down, making miki and a few others blink. 

Getting a sense for how uncomfortable the atmosphere had become, Sonika took control of the situation.

“Let’s take a break.” Sonika placed her cards down. “You’re all so tense, let’s just stretch for a while.”

In complete unison, everyone pulled out their chairs and stood from the table. They were all too antsy to stay sitting for too long. Over by the bar, a small television hung on the wall. The remote for turning it on sat on the bar beside the coffee pot. Seeing it, Sonika smiled and waltzed on over to it. She thought she found a way to lighten the mood.

“It’s so late and dreary over here, maybe we could use a little background noise. Let’s turn on the TV, maybe it’ll calm our nerves a little.” 

Nobody had any qualms with the suggestion, and with the flick of the remote, Sonika switched the TV on. She didn’t know which channels were accessible on the small television, so she didn’t bother trying to change it. She, herself, did not care to watch it. She turned away, hearing the voices of people talking on the tiny screen as she returned to her bag in the sitting area. 

“As you can see here, we can expect some showers in northern Synthania over the coming week. If you look down here--”

“Hey, Sonika.” Lily greeted the greenhead by the couch.

“Oh, hey, Lily! What’s up?”

“What did you say the name of your book was? I might want to check it out when I get the time.”

“20 Days, and you should! I think you’ll enjoy it.”

“Care to tell me more about it?” 

Lily and Sonika took a seat on the couch to discuss the book. Over in the other corner, by an open window overlooking the street, Yohio approached miki. As Yohio mentioned, miki had been quiet for most of the night. She did not seem very invested in the game, and she did not care to engage in conversation with anyone. 

“Look, I’m, uh, really sorry about that. Just got a little nervous is all.” 

“It’s fine. Apology accepted.”

“So… uh, care to answer my question?”

miki groaned. She should have expected this. No matter how many times she said it, Yohio did not believe she needed to keep her thoughts in her head.

“I haven’t been quiet the _whole_ time, you know. Sonika and I were chatting on the way in. Didn’t you see us?”

“Oh. Is she trying to get everyone to read that book of hers?”

“No. We just had a few ‘things’ to discuss.” 

“What sort of things?”

“Why are you so nosy? They’re personal. None of your business.”

miki stomped away from Yohio, who shrugged and turned over to Lily and Sonika. They were heavily invested in whatever conversation they were having. “Looks like she’s got another one.” he sighed.

Sonika took the book from her bag to show Lily a certain page. She pointed out a monologue from the perspective of the book’s antagonist, a hitman who always knew the best ways to end a life. 

“His methods are… interesting, to say the least.” Lily read the paragraph over to herself a few times. Sonika beamed widely at her, happy to have a new friend in her soon-to-be 20 Days fanclub. 

“The villain, er, Collin, is actually a fascinating character. He announces his methods to everyone, but they seem too blind to notice most of the time. If they just listened to him, maybe they’d survive his traps.”

“Why is he killing everyone, anyway? Shouldn’t they work together if they want to survive the simulation?” asked Lily.

“That’s the thing. To him, it’s just a game he wants to win. He doesn’t want anyone else to make it out. Like you said, he’s a really interesting character. Again, I really wish more people in the cast would listen to him. Sometimes, he says some really useful stuff.” 

“Like what?”

“Alright, ladies, can we get back to this game? We all want to go home here.” Longya called the chatting girls back to the table.

“Let’s continue this conversation later.” Sonika put her book back into her bag.

“Yeah, let’s. I look forward to it.” 

The six players reconvened at the table, while the television continued rambling on in the background. 

“I think we have a great year of football to look forward to. All of our players are raring to go, they won’t stop at anything to win this time.” 

Staring one another down, Yohio, miki, Lily, Sonika, Longya, and flower sat in an imperfect circle. They left a clutter of unoccupied chairs in the corner, representing those eliminated from the game. Cocorobo had her own stool and sat behind Lily, not moving a muscle to avoid upsetting Longya or Yohio. 

Just as the game begun, miki rose from where she sat. “I’m going to the bathroom.” she said.

“Are you fucking serious?!” Yohio stammered. “You had all that time and you’re choosing to go now?”

“I didn’t feel like going before. If you’ll excuse me…”

miki retreated from the table, and headed toward the men’s restroom. Without paying mind to this fact, she went inside, also ignoring the watchful eyes glaring at her from the table.

“You know, everyone’s been using the guy’s bathroom today.” Sonika noticed. 

“Yeah. I think miki went in there earlier, just a bit after Len went in. Maybe she finds it more convenient? Since it’s closer and all.” Lily responded.

“Yeah, it is. I went in there earlier, too.” flower added. 

“Yeah, I suppose.”

Silence. Awkward, tense, uncomfortable silence.

Not even flower tried to make conversation in miki’s absence. They were all exhausted, stressed out, frustrated, and wanting to go home. Nobody wanted to be Lily or Cocorobo, who had to stay after everything had ended, and nobody especially wanted to be Len. 

The only noise that filled the room came from the TV Sonika had turned on. The news bulletins continued, though most of the Den’s residents tuned them out.

“--a horrible accident discovered just outside the hospital. The driver did not survive, and further inspection implies he may have been dead before the initial impact…”

It didn’t take long for miki to return. Keeping a look of complete inattentiveness in her face, she approached the other players and returned to her seat. As if nothing happened at all, she lifted her cards and waited for the game to continue. Nobody bothered asking how Len was doing. They all knew the answer by then. At that point, nobody had a single doubt in their mind. 

“So, miki, what’s in your purse?” Yohio pried. 

“What the hell, Yohio?” Sonika shot from the other side of the room. “You can’t just ask a lady what’s in her purse, you dick!” 

“Sonika, please don’t. I’m capable of defending myself.” miki lifted her hand to motion for Sonika to stand down. Then, she addressed Yohio. “Pray tell, why on Earth do you want to know what is in my purse?”

“You’re hiding something, I know it. Bring it over here and empty it.”

“Yohio, I think--” Longya began to say, but miki cut him off.

“Okay? That’s what you want, huh? That’s what you want?”

In an aggressive manner, miki stormed away from the table and made for the pile of bags sitting over on the couch. She grabbed hers, and brought it back to her seat. She proceeded to unzip the top, turn it upside down, and release its contents onto the table in front of her. 

A wallet, loose change, wrappers containing various items (some personal), gum, forgotten food, a water bottle, and some other things Yohio did not care about fell to the table. miki put her hands on her hips and stood back, displaying her bag’s contents for all to see.

“Take a good look, Yohio. See anything of interest to you?” 

Yohio shook his head. Clearly, he had been mistaken. 

miki frustratedly returned everything to her purse, sliding it all off the table into the open bag. Once she had everything inside, she zipped it shut, and proceeded to smack Yohio across the face with it. 

“Asshole.”

No one even tried to stop miki from making her attack. Everyone at the table, including Longya, felt Yohio’s request had been uncalled for. With her purse in hand, miki stepped away from the table without looking back.

“I’m leaving. Enjoy your stupid little game.”

Without another word, miki stomped away from the others and left the Den. She slammed the door shut behind her as hard as she could, letting everyone know just how pissed off she was. 

Yohio awkwardly slumped down in his chair, receiving a few judgmental glares. 

“What? You guys noticed… you thought… Ugh, forget it!”

“Let’s just finish this game and get out of here. We’re all sick to death of each other, and if we stay here for much longer, I might grow homicidal.” said a reasonably irritated Longya.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let’s play this fuckin’ game.” Yohio agreed with the rich man.

Before anyone could make the next move, flower spoke up.

“I don’t think I will, actually. I can’t take this anymore.”

Not caring for what happened to her chair, flower stood and let it fall to the floor. Before she could storm off, however, Longya grabbed her wrist to stop her.

“Uh, excuse me? I’m going. Let go of me.” 

“Not yet. What were you doing at Jud’s the other day?” 

flower spit in Longya’s eye and tore her arm out of his grip. Before anyone could move any further, flower reached into the pocket of her shorts and gripped onto something. Longya watched as she unsheathed the handle of what appeared to be a switchblade knife. 

“I thought you said you didn’t--”

“Ask me something again and it’ll be in your throat. Fuck off.” 

flower let the knife slip back into her pocket, then stormed out of the building. She had not brought any belongings with her, with the exception of the small object in her pocket. Nobody knew she had it on her the entire time. 

With only four players remaining, each of them sat quietly, unsure of whether or not to continue playing. Cocorobo scooted forward now that she had much more room at the table, but not a single person lifted a card. Lily even went as far as to leave her cards showing, which nobody pointed out to her. 

It was past 2 AM. Nobody would be sleeping after such a stressful night. If they kept this up, none of them would be leaving, either. 

At last, Sonika stood, having had enough. “Alright, I’m done. This can’t go on.” 

The others also rose when Sonika left their pitiful circle, each of them watching from afar as the greenhead returned to her bag on the couch. 

“After all this, you’re going to stop short?” asked Yohio.

“Mhm. After everything that’s happened tonight, how can we possibly keep playing? It doesn’t even matter who puts on the goddamn show. I’m tired and anxious as all hell. I can’t go on like this.” 

As Sonika fumbled with her bag to make sure she had all of her belongings, Longya turned over to Lily and her humble maid. “Are you going to join her? She’s your friend, isn’t she?”

“We’re staying to the end, and that’s final.” Lily answered, firmly. Cocorobo seconded the notion.

“I have a proposal,” the black and white-haired rich man leaned inward. Lily and Yohio did the same. “If you and your friend leave, Yohio and I will take responsibility for cleaning up. I wouldn’t want you to feel stressed out or anything. After all, you have been through a lot tonight.” 

Without answering Longya’s request, Lily averted her gaze to the empty glass in front of Yohio, which formerly held soda. She also took notice of the fact that Longya hadn’t drank anything all night. She snickered to herself, then addressed the young blonde man instead of the rich one. 

“You brought your own soda, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, so what? 

“I guess Coco’s drinks weren’t good enough for you, huh?”

“You’re one to talk, Lily,” Longya butted in. “I noticed that you’ve only drank the honey. I’m not entirely convinced that’s just a strange addiction.” 

Lily leered at the two men staring her down as if they were about to unleash hell upon her. The great feeling of discomfort they gave her made her reluctant to continue arguing with them, but they were close to figuring everything out. Could she allow it?

“I think you’d better leave.” Longya said after a moment of silence. He made his voice loud and clear, assuring Lily she was not welcome there. Yohio nodded along, quietly agreeing with his friend. Feeling such high intensity coming from both of them, the blonde girl had a revelation.

Ultimately, Lily asked:

“Wait, are you two in it together?” 

In the back of the room, Sonika claimed something from her bag. She let it drop to the ground, but clung onto the object she had taken out. When the three players felt her watchful glare upon them, they nervously turned around to see the girl in orange pointing a pistol directly at them.

“Y-you checked the wrong bag.” Sonika said with her finger on the trigger. 

With a loud “Bang!”, Sonika shot Longya in the chest, sending his limp body over the table and scattering everything beneath it. Then, she turned to Yohio and shot him, as well. Taking a bullet to the heart, he fell to the floor and died there. 

Lastly, Sonika turned the gun on Lily. Lily lifted her hands in the air, and Cocorobo did the same. Both of them were too frightened to move. Coco didn’t even have the strength to jump to the aid of her beloved companion. 

Sonika’s finger lingered close to the trigger, sweat pouring down her forehead and her entire body twitching. She kept the gun locked on Lily, ready to fire at any instant. Under heavy breath, she asked the blonde: “Coco will clean this up, right?”

Keeping her hands in the air, Lily nervously nodded her head. Cocorobo did the same, not wanting to be shot, either. 

With that assurance, Sonika lowered the gun, then bent over to pick up her bag. When they were certain she was not going to shoot them, Lily and Coco lowered their hands and took a few deep breaths. Sonika returned the pistol to her handbag, then shut it inside. The three remaining women then gathered together in the center of the room, looking back at the two dead bodies in front of them.

“Think anyone will find out?” Sonika asked. The tension in the Den finally died down.

“No, Coco is very efficient. We’ll be fine.”

“That’s good to know.” 

Slinging her handbag over her shoulder, Sonika moved over to Lily, the latter staying completely in place. Sonika gave her a charming smile, then motioned to her bag.

“If you want, we can meet up sometime this week to talk about our book. I enjoyed our little discussion today.”

“Yeah, so did I.” Lily managed to crack a smile, trying her best to release all her nervous tensions. By then, she knew Sonika meant her no harm.

“You know, all things considered, it’s actually a pretty bad book,” Sonika looked down at her bag. “Still fun to talk about, though.” 

“Yeah, sounds like it.” Lily agreed. 

“Anyway, I think I better go. I’ll be seeing you around,” Sonika turned toward the door. “Goodnight, Lily.”

“Goodnight, Sonika.”

After wishing each other a good night, Sonika left the building. Lily and Coco were alone at last, without another living soul in sight. They stood quietly in the middle of the den without saying a word to one another, as though they were waiting for the other to make the first call. 

After a while, Lily said “Well, we better get started. We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

Cocorobo agreed, and didn’t hesitate to begin working. Few people were as detail-oriented as her when it came to cleaning, and she took pride in her ability to make anything look untouched. By dawn, the Den would look exactly as it did before any of them came in.

Cocorobo started cleaning up the mess while Lily walked over to the window. She stared off into the distance, hearing the hushed sounds of the city at night. The sounds that never reached the inside of the Den.


End file.
